Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

T he flickering torch cast menacing shadows across the cold, damp walls of the chamber as Ashe scrubbed the filth-laden stones. The dull ache in her back and the scent of mildew were quickly becoming her constant companions. It had only been two weeks since she found herself trapped in a contract of her stepmother’s making, but her body was past bent and broken.

Only her body.

Her ice blue eyes, which once held the light of mischief, now sparked with determination and defiance. Beneath the dirt and grime, her fire to escape burned as bright as it had the moment she’d found herself in Terra Daemoniums.

Land of Demons.

A place that she’d never would have believed existed if she’d not opened her eyes to the hell of it one day. Every creature in this world was designed to kill another. A twisted and dark world that only grew worse if someone found themselves engaging with the more human of creatures.

There was day and night here - something Ashe could not tell apart for all her time spent indoors, but there was light. The sun did not shine here, suffocated by clouds that rose from the fiery pits that lay beneath the land. A constant presence and reminder of the dangerous vibe of Terra Daemoniums, but day and night could come and go.

Ashe set the rag into the frigid bucket of disgusting water and ignored the stench of sludge as she lifted the rag back up and wrung it out.

“Five thousand and nine steps to go,” she set the rag down on a stone and prayed Belial hadn’t used some twisted magic to add more stones for her to clean. As it were, she only knew the dreaded number because he’d delighted in telling her how many she had to clean.

As if the mere thought of him was akin to a beckoning call, Ashe became aware she was not alone in the horrific dungeon.

Footsteps echoed ominously, announcing the approach of someone else. The only someone with free rein was Belial. Ashe stiffened but didn’t look up when the echoes of steps stopped behind her. His presence was as suffocating as the thick fog that settled over the demon land. She would always know when he was near.

Ashe watched his feet as he circled her. “You will engage me when I enter a room,” his voice oozed over her like oil.

She complied because her body could not handle another round of punishment like the one she earned two days ago.

Turning, she couldn’t ignore the predatory grin twisted on his cruel lips as he squatted down in front of her. “Still here, my pet?” he purred, running a calloused finger along her collarbone. “I half-expected you to have escaped by now.”

Ashe’s heart pounded, but she didn’t flinch. To defeat a bully, one had to stand up to them. “I’m not a pet to be collared, Belial,” she spat, gripping the scrubbing cloth tighter. She would pay for that later, but she refused to back down on everything.

His laughter bounced off the stone walls. “Oh, but you are. You’re mine, and I can do with you as I please.” His hand closed around her wrist, his grip tight like a vice. He stood, yanking her to her feet with him. His black eyes seemed to glow red as they looked at her with a hunger that made her stomach churn. “Your defiance amuses me. . . for now.”

“Go. To. Hell.” She bit out, knowing damn well there was no Hell, only Terra Daemoniums.

With a swift, powerful blow, Belial’s fist connected with Ashe’s jaw. The impact sent fiery pain shooting through her head, and stars exploded across her vision. A blistering sound rang out in her ears, but she knew it was only a response to the force of the blow. It had only been two weeks since he began to break and mend her body for his amusement, but it was enough time for Ashe to learn how to plant her weight against the floor or ground and not fall.

She stood tall, meeting Belial’s cold, calculating gaze with a glimmer of defiance in her own eyes. Her body shook with adrenaline and fear, but she refused to show weakness in front of her enemy. “I think I’m getting accustomed to that.”

Belial’s lip curled into a snarl. “Not for much longer,” he hissed, grabbing a whip from the wall. “Tonight, I’ll teach you the price of defiance.”

Every fiber of her being screamed for her to run, but she knew he would catch her.

Demons had their own powers, and while she only knew Belial could heal her, with the size of his estate and the way humans clearly made deals with him, he had more power in a single finger than she could imagine.

Ashe’s breath caught in her throat because she refused to cry out. Instead, she straightened her spine and braced herself. The lashes would leave welts on her back, but her determination to escape would only burn brighter. She knew in her heart that an opportunity would present itself, and when it did, she would be ready.

Ashe closed her eyes as Belial raised the whip, tricking herself into believing it would not land. Her hand flew to the gold ring on the chain around her neck and grasped it between her fingers. “One day, I will be free,” she whispered to herself. “And when I am, I’ll rain down a thousand hells upon you.”

The whip cracked against her skin, the leather stinging like fire as it ripped through the flesh on her back. Ashe bit down on her lip, refusing to give Belial the satisfaction of hearing her cry out in pain. She had endured this three days ago, and she would endure it again.

Each strike made her bones rattle and her skin split. The sound of flesh tearing and blood spattering filled the room. But she clenched her teeth and bore it, determined not to give him the satisfaction of breaking her. The pain was unbearable, but she refused to let out a scream. She would not show him any weakness, even as her vision blurred from the tears and her body trembled with each blow.

“Come on, little mortal,” Belial taunted, his voice dripping with sadistic pleasure. “Scream for me.”

Ashe gritted her teeth and gripped the ring on the chain even tighter. If she gave in, he wouldn’t stop. He would just get off on her pain and keep going.

Her legs quivered and screamed in protest with every strike, begging her to let them bend and not endure some of the pain. The taste of copper filled her mouth as she bit back the screams that threatened to escape. But with each passing moment, she could feel herself growing weaker, the intensity of the punishment taking its toll on her body.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Belial stopped whipping her. He stepped back and admired his handiwork, no doubt with his usual twisted smile on his face.

“Good girl,” he purred, running a finger over one of the welts and painting something in the blood on Ashe’s back. “You’re learning.”

Ashe fought back a wave of nausea and bile at his touch. She wanted nothing more than to wipe that smug grin off his face. Even if he’d donned the most handsome face to torment her.

“You’ll never break me,” she whispered hoarsely.

Belial laughed again and turned away from Ashe. “We’ll see about that. You didn’t make this deal for yourself, which means you’re not as strong as those who do.”

He walked out of the room without another word, leaving Ashe alone with only the sound of her own ragged breathing echoing off the walls.

Ashe let out a deep sigh and collapsed onto the floor. She curled into a ball, holding herself tightly and trying to push away the memories of the torture she had just endured.

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She wasn’t certain how long it took her to get back to the small space that she considered her room. But when she did, Ashe didn’t make it to the bed. She couldn’t lift herself because Belial did not heal her this time. Instead, Ashe lay on the damp floor, her back stinging with each inhale and exhale. Slowly, she raised her hand to her neck, fingers brushing the thin gold chain. The last memento of her mother.

The memory of her mother’s somber face, framed by wispy red curls and a trembling lip, flooded Ashe’s mind. She pressed her fingers against the small gold ring hanging from a delicate chain around her neck.

It was a simple band with intricate engravings passed down through generations in their family. Her mother had given it to her on the night before she’d left this life.

‘This will keep you safe,’ her mother had whispered, placing it gently over her head. ‘It will always bring you back to me.’

That time can’t come soon enough , Ashe thought bitterly. The ring was her only connection to her past life, to a time before the demon realm and the promise of endless servitude. She clung to the memories like a lifeline, fueling her determination to escape.

Ashe knew her mother would be proud of her strength, of her resilience in the face of such adversity. But she also knew her mother never intended for her to live this way. She wouldn’t have sold Ashe into slavery.

For years after her death, Ashe treasured that ring and held onto it like a lifeline as if it could bring her mother back, or even her father, who vanished into the night and never came back.

Ashe let out a pained sigh and slowly sat up, wincing as fresh bolts of pain shot through her body. Wrapping an arm around herself, she tried to steady her breathing. She needed to distract herself from the pain and fear that threatened to consume her every moment in this hellish place.

She stood up on shaky legs and walked over to one wall where a single window no bigger than her palm looked out into nothingness. The only light that entered was a dull glow coming from somewhere outside.

Ashe moved closer and placed a hand against the glass, praying that maybe someone would see her hand and save her. But all she could sense were shadows and an eerie emptiness that seemed to leech into every corner of this place. No one was coming to save her, because no one knew where she was except the bitch who somehow sold her to hell.

Ashe’s thoughts drifted back to the day it all began, the day her life was stolen from her. Her stepmother’s cold, calculating blue eyes filled her mind, her words like poison in her ear. ‘The debt must be paid,’ she had said, ‘and you are the only currency I have, worthless as you are, you’ll pay my debt to the demon.’

Anger and betrayal coiled in her stomach, but Ashe pushed it down. She couldn’t afford to lose control now, not when she was so close to finding a weakness in Belial’s impenetrable fortress.

Once the first week had passed, Ashe focused on nothing save for escaping and sending her bitch of a stepmother down here in Ashe’s place. She lay on her pallet, memorizing the layout of the stronghold, the guards’ patrols, and any possible escape routes. Her mind became a map, etching each detail into her memory.

Days blurred together, the passage of time marked by the slow decay of the world around her. As the demonic energies seeped into her bones, Ashe felt herself slipping away, becoming something darker, twisted by her hatred.

But she clung to the ring, to the memory of her mother’s love, and the promise of escape.

And revenge.

With every beat of her heart, Ashe vowed to find a way back to the mortal realm. Her life was a mess there as well, but she was free. The ring glowed softly against her palm, as if in response, a flickering beacon of hope in the inky blackness that had become her world.